Ukraine Claims Shooting Russian Su-30SM Fighter With MANPADS

Ukrainian Forces armed with a man-portable air-defense system (MANPADS) have shot down a Russian Su-30SM fighter jet over the Black Sea between Odesa and Crimea.

The Ukrainian Defense Ministry confirmed the incident via social media, stating that the jet was destroyed by a MANPADS deployed by a special unit.

The Su-30SM, which had taken off from Saki Airbase in Novofedorivka, was reportedly engaged in operations targeting towers in the Black Sea before losing radar contact. The aircraft was equipped with six missiles, of which four were fired before it disappeared from radar. Both pilots are believed to have perished in the incident, reports claim.

Media reports indicate that the fighter jet was engaged in an operation from a position outside the range of Ukrainian coastal air defenses. The jet had launched missiles at Odesa City but encountered Ukrainian forces at gas rigs off the Crimean coast. Despite multiple attacks on its home base on the western coast of occupied Crimea, the aircraft continued to operate from this location.

Following the incident, Russian forces initiated a search and rescue operation involving an An-26 aircraft and Mi-8 and Ka-27 helicopters. By midday, they reported finding an aviation fuel slick about 70 kilometers northwest of Crimea’s Cape Tarkhankut. Debris from the Su-30SM was subsequently located.

Russian Telegram channels, including Voenny Osvedomitel, confirmed the loss of the jet and its two pilots, identified as Captain E.V. Stepanishin and Navigator D.O. Fomin, from the 43rd Naval Aviation Regiment.

A post quoting sources from the Ukrianian Intelligence Directorate stated that the aircraft was brought down by an anti-aircraft version of the R-73RDM-2 air-to-air missile fired from the Magura-V5 unmanned surface vehicle of the Ukrainian Armed Forces operating in the Black Sea.  

The Ukrainian Telegram channel Krymsky Veter had reported the jet’s disappearance a day earlier, noting that the Su-30SM, along with a Su-35, had been launching Kh-31P missiles at mainland Ukraine. According to Krymsky Veter, the MANPADS were fired from a boat.

The Ukrainian General Staff reported that Russia has lost 369 combat airplanes since the start of its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.